


the stubborn will of gravity

by risingrainbow



Series: uneven odds [2]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Fluff and Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-04
Updated: 2018-11-04
Packaged: 2019-08-17 16:20:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,302
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16519931
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/risingrainbow/pseuds/risingrainbow
Summary: 'till our hands get tied, by the stubborn will of gravitylance isn't willing to let keith go that easily





	the stubborn will of gravity

Lance always knew how insecure Keith was. He'd watched, helplessly, as Keith would destroy himself with his own worries, as he'd stay awake at night and convince himself that all of his loved ones were going to leave him. He just never thought that Keith would give in, that Keith would surrender and believe the wild ideas plaguing his brain. But that was what Lance discovered in the kitchen of their apartment. Keith, bent over a piece of piece of paper, scribbling furiously. Lance didn't think much of it, other than recognizing how late (or rather, early, since the clock read _2:43_ ) it was and how strange it was that Keith was writing at this hour. That is, of course, until he saw the tear tracks on his lover's face and the small, packed bag by his feet.

“Babe?” Lance croaked, exhaustion clouding his voice. “Keith? What's going on?”

The said boy looked up from his paper fast enough to give himself whiplash. “Lance! Nothing's wrong, nothing, it‘s fine, it's fine. Go back to sleep, go to bed.”

Lance cautiously walked forward, reaching for Keith's hand and the boy _flinched_ , honest to God flinched, and Lance felt a piece of his heart crumble. “Babe,” Lance whispered, making his voice as soft as he could. “ _Please._ Tell me what's wrong.” Keith's lip shivered and he wrapped his arms around himself, hiding the note he was writing in his embrace. “It's nothing Lance, okay? Nothing.”

Lance kept stepping forward and when he got close enough, he smoothed his thumbs over the tears under Keith's eyes. “Darling, these aren't nothing. You can tell me, okay? You can trust me.” He cradled Keith's face in his hands and pressed their foreheads together. “ _Please_ trust me.”

“I can't, Lance please,” Keith murmured, his words pleasing with him. “I have to do this.”

“Do what?”

“It's fine, I'm doing this for you, so it's fine.” Keith was barely convincing himself at this point and Lance’s heart broke with every word spoken.

His heart broke even more when he realized what Keith was speaking of. “You're trying to leave, aren't you?”

The boy flinched and Lance felt what little resolve he had left crumble. He let go of Keith and stepped back, mind instantly analyzing every move he'd made in the past week and doubting everything he'd said as well. “Is it me? Did I do something? Am _I_ why you're hurting?” Lance’s voice cracked and Keith's head snapped up. “No! God, Lance, _never_.”

Lance stepped back further, unconvinced and unfocused. “Then _why_?”

Keith bit his lip, a childhood habit he had for when he was stressed under the pressure of confrontation. “It always happens. I love someone, they either die or leave and I couldn't _stand_ it, if either of those happened with you. I-I can't _lose_ you. And I can’t be the reason you get hurt.”

His heart joined his broken resolve as Keith's composure crumbled along with his posture. He fell to his knees, curling in on himself as a sob escaped his lips.

Lance swore to himself that from that point forward, he was going to do his damn fucking best to make sure he never saw Keith as _broken_ as he was in that moment, kneeling there on the floor with tears streaming down his cheeks and soft cries forcing themselves through his lips.

He fell next to him, hands reaching for Keith’s wrists in order to pull them from his face (definitely not to feel the promise ring on his finger, of course not). “Darling, I’d rather be hurt by being with you then live my life without you in it.” Keith whimpered, his hands in Lance’s and Lance intertwined their fingers. “You’ve always been one of the best people in my life, even before I fell in love with you. I’m not abandoning you, and I’m not going to let you walk out on this. On _us_. I love you way too fucking much for that.”

At that, Keith fell forward, everything in his body sagging as his head landed on Lance’s shoulder. Lance let go of Keith’s wrists in order to wrap his arms around the sobbing boy, letting his own tears fall, now that Keith couldn’t see them. “It’s gonna be alright, love,” Lance whispered, burying his face into Keith’s hair and soaking in his scent.

Keith wrapped his around Lance’s stomach and his fingernails dug into Lance’s back, but they grounded Lance and they acted as a reality check, making Lance realize just how _close_ he’d come to losing Keith. If he’d woken up even a few minutes later, who knew what would’ve happened? His chest constricted as he barely managed to hold back his sobs, his lip hurting as he bit down and forced himself to be quiet.

_Oh Dios, I could’ve lost him, oh Dios, he could’ve left and he’d be gone, so gone._

“I’m so sorry, Lance, I’m so sorry,” Keith cried, his voice muffled with Lance’s chest. Lance choked back his sobs moved a hand to stroke through Keith’s hair and shushed him quietly, trying to keep his voice steady. “You have nothing to apologize for, darling. Absolutely nothing.”

Keith shook his head and pulled back, gripping Lance’s hands. “No, I do. I’m hurting you, how can I not apologize, love?” Lance raised his hand to Keith’s cheek, not even bothering to let go of Keith’s hand, which ended up with Keith touching his own cheek with the back of his hand, but it got his attention and that was Lance’s goal. “Keith, listen. The only thing hurting me right now is that you didn’t tell me you were feeling like this again. We’re a team, darling. I just wish you’d told me.”

Keith nodded, hair falling in his eyes and sticking to his tear covered cheeks. “I didn’t want you to be upset.” Lance chuckled softly, because of _course_ that was the reason. Keith, however many walls he put up, would always be the boy who pushed others away before they could reject him. “My darling, like I said before, the only reason I’m upset is because _you’re_ upset. I hate seeing you in pain.”

Keith gripped his hands tighter and moved forward until he was on Lance’s lap and Lance didn’t protest the new position. How could he, when Keith was pressed so close that Lance could feel his heartbeat, the reminder that he _hadn’t_ left? His nose rubbed against Keith’s as he rested their foreheads together and they simply sat there, breathing each other’s air and memorizing each other’s touch for the millionth time. Keith’s hands let go of Lance’s as he cupped Lance’s face in his hands, thumbs sliding over the tears. “I’m so sorry, love,” Keith whispered. This time, Lance didn’t deny it. He just pressed a soft kiss to the corner of Keith’s mouth and sighed. “Me too, darling. Me too.”

They sat there together, just existing, until the clock on the stove read _3:20_ and Lance knew it was time for the two to rest. “Darling, we have to go to bed.” Keith whimpered and Lance sighed as he pressed his lips to Keith’s cheek. “Want me to carry you?” Keith nodded and Lance moved his hands from Keith’s shoulders to under his thighs and held him close as he stood, which took him a little time, seeing as he had a koala clinging to his neck and no free hands, but he managed.

While placing Keith gently on the sheets, Lance felt his heart break. Under the soft lights of the glow in the dark stars on their ceiling, Keith looked more vulnerable than ever and Lance longer to wrap him in a warm embrace and never let him go.

So that’s what he did.

**Author's Note:**

> thank eileen for this lmao


End file.
